Telephone Etiquette to Grow Your Small Business by Yodle
You may have ever called a plumber, or a spa, or a veterinarian looking
for help and been so turned off by the phone conversation that you went
somewhere else, which is an experience we’ve all had. And it is one we
at Yodle try and help our small and local business owners avoid at all
costs.
We have seen small business owners time and time again surprised by how
their receptionists handle client inquiries. For this reason, a tool
Yodle offers to clients we provide internet marketing services to is
call recording (though not for doctors and lawyers for privacy
compliance), which allows them to listen to calls and make any necessary
improvements.
Having offered the call recording services for five years, we at Yodle
have learned a lot from our clients about telephone etiquette. We’ve
been able to assemble several best practices and wanted to share them
with you all now. It is our hope that these tips will help make the most
out of any methods of attracting new clients.
Answer the Phone Timely
Small business owners are often a one-person show and this seemingly
simple task can become quite hard. In fact, studies show that 2 out of 3
local business owners don’t answer the phone. But not answering means
that a lot of potential clients are slipping through the cracks and
finding competitors instead! If you can’t always grab it when it rings,
you can 1) hire a receptionist 2) have the calls forwarded to your cell
phone – making sure to have a professional voicemail message, recorded
in your own voice, or even 3) use a call answering service so that the
call is always picked up, and your potential customer always gets a
person to speak with.
Have Well-Trained Receptionists
It’s important to train your receptionists to be positive, articulate
and welcoming, as they are the front line of your business. When a
potential customer calls and interrupts your receptionist’s lunch hour,
they shouldn’t know that just by the tone of voice when the call is
answered. Also, a well-trained receptionist will be able to handle the
basic preliminary questions about the business: what services do you
offer? How does this benefit me? What’s a ballpark estimate? At some
point, we’ve all called a Doctor, gotten a receptionist with a bad case
of the “I Don’t Knows”, hung up, and promptly found a new Doctor. Bottom
Line? A friendly, patient and helpful receptionist is key.
Use Recording Devices
Obviously, your receptionist’s primary goal should be to convert phone
calls into business for you, but how can you make them reach the goal?
Is your receptionist getting people to set appointments quickly for your
services? What about handling cancellations? Or even dealing with upset
customers? Something Yodle offers to all clients, and would recommend
for all calls regardless of source, is a recording device. This device
has provided you with important insight into how customers are being
treated and enabled you to significantly improve customer service.
Hiring a local online advertiser like Yodle to get your business found
online is only the first step to success. What happens once the phone
rings is up to you. While it is a tough market for local services with
many uncontrollable variables impacting your business success, by having
the best phone skills in town, you will have your business well
controlled.